memory_alphafandomcom-20200223-history
Earth-Romulan War
The Earth-Romulan war was a major interstellar conflict fought between the forces of Earth and those of the Romulan Star Empire, circa the 2160s. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") The Parties The war was fought between Earth, the Romulan Star Empire, and their respective allies. The Romulan Star Empire is centered in the Romulan system, and consisted during the war of at least that system (including its inhabited planets Romulus and Remus). The extent of the pre-war Star Empire, like so much about the Romulans of that era, is not fully known, however. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") Earth was an independently-governed planet that joined the United Federation of Planets as a founding member in 2161. (TNG: "The Outcast") The war did not, however, involve the Federation as an organization. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") The two sides knew little of each other before the war, and little after the war. Until 2266, the humans had not even (knowingly) seen Romulans and believed that Romulans had not seen them, either. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") (This was a mistake on the part of the humans, as Romulans had observed humans as early as 2152). (ENT: "The Aenar") And whatever the Vulcans knew of the Romulans at the time it was not divulged widely to Earth forces, contributing to a general lack of information on Earth’s enemy. Spock summarized the limited state of knowledge that still existed in 2266: “Earth believes the Romulans to be warlike, cruel, treacherous; and only the Romulans know what they think of Earth.” (TOS: "Balance of Terror") The Course of the War The causes and motivations that lead to the war are not known; nor is it known which side began it. It is also not known how long the war lasted. :Over the course of Trek, few battles could be placed as possibility part of this war, a battle at Galorndon Core is one and the Battle of Okardo is another. The Ships and Weapons Earth *Earth had launched its first warp 5 (old scale) capable starship, the ''Enterprise'' NX-01, in 2151. (ENT: "Broken Bow") Prior to 2161 when it was retired, the Enterprise had weaponry consisting of at least phase cannons, spatial torpedoes, and photonic torpedoes. (ENT: "Fight or Flight", "The Expanse") ) just prior to the war.]] in 2154]] Romulan *Romulan weapons of 2152 included at least disruptors. (ENT: "The Aenar") During the war (although not always prior to it) Romulan ships were painted to resemble a “bird of prey”, a tradition kept up until at least the 23rd Century. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") At least some Romulan ships during the war had faster-than-light capability, but it is unknown how fast they could actually travel. (ENT: "The Aenar") At least one Romulan ship had a cloaking device in 2152, although it is unknown whether such devices were generally deployed during the war. (ENT: "Minefield") In 2266, Spock categorized the weaponry generally used in the Earth-Romulan war as “atomic” in nature, and fairly primitive at that. He also characterized the ships in use as primitive, and designed in ways that did not permit quarter or captives. Ship-to-ship visual communication between Earth-allied ships and Romulan-allied ships did not take place during the war or during the peace negotiations, but since both sides had visual communication systems it may have been possible had they wanted to do so. (TOS: "Balance of Terror", ENT: "The Aenar") The Final Battle The Battle of Cheron is generally considered the decisive battle in the Earth-Romulan war. Earth achieved a major victory, and the Romulan military humiliation and long-lasting political effects of the battle were remembered by both sides well into the 24th Century. (TNG: "The Defector") The Peace in 2266]] Following the Battle of Cheron the two sides negotiated a treaty via subspace radio. Among other things it established a Neutral Zone, entry into which by either side would constitute an act of war. Earth set up at least eight outpost stations on asteroids along its side of the Neutral Zone to monitor Romulan activity. The Romii system was one of the star systems on the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone. From a 23rd century human perspective, the Neutral Zone represented an area "between planets Romulus and Remus and the rest of the galaxy . . ." Some humans still harbored resentment over the war after a century of peace, including Lt. Stiles of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)|USS Enterprise]]. But despite these human attitudes, until 2266 the Neutral Zone served its purpose and the treaty had remained unbroken. In fact, one might say it served its purpose too well, as there were limited or no contacts between Earth and the Romulan Star Empire from the conclusion of the war until the mid-23rd century. (TOS: "Balance of Terror") Background On the War Nearly 40 years of speculation and supposition surround the Earth-Romulan war. This article attempts to only draw from canonical sources: the series as presented, rather than widely held beliefs built up over time or only found in associated reference materials. A few items of note, then, as to how we know what we know: *The time period for the war is the subject of some discussion. To summarize: :*"Balance of Terror" is believed to have taken place in 2266. This is supported by the episodes: In DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations", Dulmur and Lucsly state that it is then "one hundred and five years, one month, and twelve days" after the events of TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles". In TNG: "The Neutral Zone", the year is explicitly stated to be 2364. The "Neutral Zone" takes place approximately 9 years before "Trials and Tribble-ations" (you can tell from the Stardates, as well as by the events shown in the intervening years). So that put "Tribbles" in the year 2268 (2364+9-105). If the second season of Star Trek represented one year after the first season, that would put "Balance of Terror" in either 2266 or 2267, depending on the month. Possibly as far back as 2265, but that might be pushing it. So 2266 is just about right. :*Spock says in TOS: "Balance of Terror" that the Earth Outposts "monitor the Neutral Zone established by treaty after the Earth-Romulan conflict a century ago." That would place the war being active somewhere around 2165-67. Spock may be many things, but no one has ever accused him of being imprecise with words or anything dealing with numbers. (Had the war ended in 2160, for example, the accurate statement would have be "over a century ago".) :*What we can tell from the above is that the war was active in 2165-67; when it began or when it actually ended is not know. So placing it in "the 2260s" seems the most appropriate choice, pending any further revelations in later episodes or movies. :*Note that it is not necessary for the ending of the war to pre-date the founding of the Federation; having it occur after the founding does not conflict with anything seen in the various series. :*There is, nonetheless, a belief held by some that the war was concluded prior to the founding of the Federation in 2161. (The 2161 date comes from TNG: "The Outcast".) This is not based on anything in the series, though; it is drawn from external reference works and fan speculation over the years. :*Please also see the Discussion page for thoughts and opinions on the evidence for and conclusions regarding when the war took place. *Romii is noted prominently in the Neutral Zone map in "Balance of Terror". It was never mentioned anywhere else. It could have been a major stellar system in the Star Empire, or simply a nearby object identified for orientation purposes only. *Romulans having warp drive during the war has been controversial ever since Scotty said they only had "simple impulse" in "Balance of Terror". Whether he was wrong, that the experimental ship was an unusual design, or the ship’s warp ability was damaged and it was limping along on impulse drive, is not knowable. (And begs the question of how it transversed interstellar distances on just impulse.) Suffice to say that Star Trek: Enterprise conclusively established Romulans having warp capability prior to the war. This is consistent with the rest of the series, actually. Romulan ships of the same design as in "Balance of Terror" chased the Enterprise while the ship was at warp in "The Deadly Years". And in Star Trek: Insurrection, Admiral Dougherty stated that "warp drive helped to form a bunch of Romulan thugs into an empire", which is sensible as star empires without faster-than-light travel would be difficult to control. The Star Empire existed prior to the outbreak of war. And no discussion of the Earth-Romulan war would be complete without some base speculation based on, but of course not part of, canon: *Earth’s allies likely included some fellow Federation members, including Andorians and Tellarites (although maybe and maybe not the Vulcans, who might have wanted to keep a low profile – see the next note.) But given that Kirk and the famous Neutral Zone map referred to the outposts as "Earth outposts", Spock referred to the conflict between the Romulans and "Earth", and the Romulans themselves in 2266 referenced the "Earth ship" when speaking of Kirk’s Enterprise, it is pretty clear that the war was not with the Federation, whenever it took place. *Romulan influence on the Vulcan High Command, through their collaboration with Administrator V'Las, may have affected Vulcan policy in regards to Earth. Depending on the length of V'Las's tenure and the start of his collaboration, the High Command's insistence on the slow development of Earth's warp technology, and their failure to come to Earth's aid during the Xindi superweapon threat, may carry the taint of Romulan hostility prior to the war. (ENT: "Kir'Shara") *The Xindi, the Suliban, and the Delphic Expanse could all have ended up on the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone. If so, the Romulans might have attacked and reduced the influence of the Xindi and Suliban between the war and the 23rd century, explaining why they faded from history after being so prominent (to Earth) in the 22nd Century (although the Xindi are said to someday join the Federation in ENT: "Azati Prime", so they can't be entirely destroyed). Keep in mind that the Romulan commander in 2366 said that he and his colleague had seen "100 campaigns together", so they had to be fighting someone. Also, the mysterious Delphic Expanse is never again mentioned, which makes some sense if it is behind the Neutral Zone. :*However, in fairness, literally dozens of alien races are present near the Federation that we don't know about. For example, in 2373 there were more than 150 members of the United Federation of Planets, and over 1,000 semi-autonomous colonies (Star Trek: First Contact), but only a relatively small number have been seen on screen. It is equally plausible to the above that the Xindi were neither behind the Neutral Zone nor decimated by the Romulans. The absence in chronologically later series can be explained by their simply not being crucial to the events seen. (Similar explanations have been proposed for the lack of Denobulan appearances, but they are beyond the scope of this article.) *It is possible that Earth itself commenced the conflict, as Data remarked in 2366 in "The Defector" that "in their long history of war, the Romulans have rarely attacked first...they prefer to test their enemy’s resolve." In other words, Earth may have been provoked into acting first. If so, that might explain why the Federation, as a governing body, stayed out if the war was either ongoing or came after the Federation's founding; the young organization may not have wanted to be seen supporting unilateral military action by Earth. *It is not clear why Spock would generalize the weaponry to "atomic" when clearly other weapons were available. Whether because these other weapons were based on atomic reactions, the widespread and – perhaps – predominate use of "old-style nuclear warheads" (as 2266 Romulans put it) during the war, faulty data, or other reasons entirely, is unknown. It appears anomalous, but may have been nothing more than an example to heighten the point he was making: that the war was fought with much lower technology than present in the 23rd Century. (Note he didn’t say it was "exclusively" fought with atomics, and is therefore less conclusive than saying it took place "a century ago".) *Various later modifications to the treaty may have taken place, as the floor of the Romulan Senate in 2379 and the star chart used by Starfleet in 2266 show slightly different boundaries for the Neutral Zone. *The Star Trek: Enterprise series finale, "These Are the Voyages...", deals with the formation of an alliance that in Deanna Troi's words, "will lead to the founding of the Federation", but makes no mention of the Earth-Romulan war. Some have viewed this as a continuity gap in the episode, but from the discussion above it appears the war might not have even started at that time. Cloaks and Continuity The ability for Romulan ships to cloak in the 22nd Century, as shown on "Minefield", has produced a quandary in continuity and the question of whether the Romulans could therefore cloak during the Earth-Romulan war. "Balance of Terror" clearly has the Enterprise crew surprised that a "theoretical" invisibility screen could be practically applied. Nothing is canon at the moment, but a few thoughts on the subject: *It is possible that the "enormous power" required to bend light and, therefore, cloak one’s ship made the 2152 version of the cloaking device impractical for large-scale wartime use by ships traveling interstellar distances. If so, then the 2266 version might have generated the surprise it did, since cloaks would not have been in wide use during the war. *Another possibility on the cloaks seen in 2152 is that the technology was purchased/stolen/taken as spoils of war from the Suliban (who had cloaks, possibly provided to them as part of the Temporal Cold War) but was not capable of being replicated by either the Romulans or the Suliban until the 23rd Century. Their use would have been discontinued as they wore out over time, and reintroduced only later. *It is conceivable that neither the 2152 cloak nor the 2266 cloak worked in conjunction with Romulan warp drives, even if the drives were off-line and only residual warp fields were present. Consider these facts: ** Scotty’s assertion that the cloak-capable "Balance of Terror" ship just had impulse drive and was never seen at warp; **The fact that the cloak-capable ships in "Minefield" don’t go to warp; **The fact that the warp-capable ships in "The Deadly Years" don’t cloak. (Although there is a the barest remnant of a cloak effect based on the episodes’ frugal use of prior special effects from "Balance of Terror", there is no dialogue to support it and so can be viewed as merely a viewscreen glitch or minor SFX mistake given that the Romulans are never clearly shown going into or coming out of cloak); **The fact that no one on the Enterprise in 2266 would have been at all surprised by a cloaked ship if cloaks had been in use during the war. After all, a warp- and cloak-capable ship would have enormous strategic and tactical advantages – the kind of advantages one remembers. **The fact that the normally ethical Federation stoops to petty thievery when a cloaking device clearly capable of being used at warp is put into production in TOS: "[[The Enterprise Incident|The Enterprise Incident]]". Of course, even the ships not seen at warp would need some kind of faster-than-light capability, else their journeys would take years or decades. So perhaps a low warp of 1.5 or less wouldn’t damage the cloak. This would still allow the ships to get where they were seen to be, but put them at such a disadvantage against the Earth warp 5 and 7 ships that they would not have been used outside the Star Empire systems during an interstellar war. *Spock’s statement that invisibility is "theorectically" possible implies that it has not been practically demonstrated. This is a problem as Earth has seen cloaks from the Suliban and the Romulans prior to 2266; the technology would have been interesting enough for Spock to have heard of it if he was familiar with theoretical invisibility. It has been suggested in the cloaking device article that the Suliban cloaking devices do not so much bend light as use a form of particle radiation to alter the molecular structure of matter in order to allow light and sensor signals to pass through it. If true, then there may be an explanation: that 23rd century Starfleet viewscreens compensate for Suliban-style cloaks and other similar phenomena by tying into the sensors and making them as fully visible as if they weren’t cloaked at all. (This is consistent with the viewscreen as seen; it is not a window, and sensor problems – like those in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan – can impair the screen’s usefulness in ways that are not logical if it is just a camera stuck out the bow of the ship. "Minefield" itself uses a similar approach, but has to be manually invoked.) Thus Spock’s line following Kirk’s inability to see the ships on the viewscreen makes a bit more sense, and a new type of cloak based on bending light that evades both sensors and viewscreen would, indeed, be theoretical to the Federation. External Links *Conjectural peace treaty, reproduced from the Star Fleet Technical Manual *Another conjectural peace treaty at Star Trek Minutiae *A Report by Masao Okazaki at The Starfleet Museum - includes an extensive (non-canon) write-up of the Romulan War *Warp Drive and Romulan History at Ex Astris Scientia - an excellent discussion of warp drive and Romulan ships Category:Conflicts de:Irdisch-Romulanischer Krieg